“God’s Economy”, by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove

Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove has given his life to teach and exemplify a biblical community that sets itself against this world’s monetary power structures that actually impoverish both rich and poor and undermine the ministry of Good News.  Wilson-Hartgrove is an associate pastor at St. John’s Baptist Church in Durham, NC and lives at Rutba House—a new monastic community based in an impoverished area, where friends, neighbors, and the homeless are always welcome.  In God’s Economy, Wilson-Hartgrove uses stories, real life examples, and the Biblical narrative to describe a culture and community of the “radical abundance of a Father who loves without limits and gives without calculating the cost.”  The book has challenged me to re-examine the ways I lead a church, the way I live by faith (yet so often by sight alone), and the way I steward God’s money.

Wilson-Hartgrove believes we all need a new dream that is concerned with the economy of heaven and not the economy of this world.  Drawing from the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and many of his former friends and co-workers, he invites us to “be part of the good life that God’s economy makes possible.”  This new dream of the good life in God’s economy is the third option.  Christians need not be pigeon-holed into either the materialism of the American Dream or the radical poverty of the willing aesthetic (pie-in-the-sky poverty).  This way to the real abundant life demands a re-ordering of our thinking.

Step 1: Money must be seen as a POWER.  Don’t get scared by the charismatic/demonology aspects of such speech.  Recognize it, name it (demons hate to be named).  In the history of the church, we have either embraced money as our own (medieval church and Christendom) or separated the two completely (God has my heart, but my business is of and for this world).  One way of unmasking this power may be the power of Christian community that meets each other’s needs (Acts 2 and Latin American community story) (reference page 50-51) and become a person of “no reputation”.  Abolish the pater familias idols (Mark 9, 10) to which we aspire.  What does it mean to be a man or woman of no reputation in our reputation-obsessed world?  The first tactic for abundant life subverts the power that this world’s economy exercises over us. (Jesus says, in effect, don’t let the CEO’s shape your dreams, but rather, learn from the restaurant waiters and migrant workers—turn the whole thing on its EAR)

Step 2: STORE UP FOR YOURSELVES TREASURES IN HEAVEN.  Much is said about American financial success, savings, and economic principles of compounding interest, etc., but “God’s children plan ahead by investing ourselves now in the never-ending kingdom of abundance.”  Your heart is where your treasure is.  We invest in the things we love and our hearts get wrapped around the things we invest in.  Financial success and empires came from the Protestant Work Ethic.  That is where savings really started.  People delayed gratifying their own desires to invest in things that were better—social programs, for one.  “The tactic of eternal investment is Jesus’ invitation to unleash the power of invested hearts for the greatest possible good—for God’s kingdom here on earth—just as it is in heaven.”  It challenges all of us if we take it seriously… The story of the expensive nard (p.115).

Step 3: Economic friendships. The story of immigrant families living 3-4 families under one roof.  “We are more enamored with the security and luxury of success than with the wisdom of the weak and God’s economy of abundance.” (Read p.150-151) IMAGINE WHAT ECONOMIC FRIENDSHIPS COULD LOOK LIKE AT YOUR CHURCH.

Without these, we don’t have any good news in the here and now.  The lesson of the feeding of the 4 and 5 thousand is that it leaves an abundance of broken pieces.  The abundance of God’s economy only happens when the bread is broken and shared.

Born of the Spirit

When Jesus talks to Nicodemus in theiroft-quoted late night hang (John, chapter 3), Jesus describes the way of the Spirit of God.  He compares the Spirit to the wind.  “The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going.  So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

I am beginning to see the Spirit of God as a fully autonomous person.   Yes, He’s interdependent as a member of the Godhead, yet with his own personality.  I have never quite seen God in this way until now.

The other instance where I see clues of this is Luke 4:22-30.  It’s an interesting connection I am trying to make.  Just be patient, please.  There are children present…

Jesus has just quoted the passage from Isaiah 61:1-2 and applies it to himself.  He states, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your presence”.  Now here is the interesting part.  He discerns the grumbling and the disbelief (“isn’t this the carpenter’s son?”).  He then defends himself in a most prickly way.  He basically tells them that they are not going to be visited by God.  That they are doomed.

I have been intrigued by this passage for a while.  Wouldn’t Jesus have a little more grace with his familiar neighbors?  Old Mordecai the Cobbler?  Sassy Shimei the Shepherdess?  But He kind of jumps down their throats!!!!!

Here’s what I think now.  When he recalls the story of the widow of Zarephath and the healing of Naaman the Syrian.  He was describing the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  It was the Holy Spirit who was resting on Elijah and doubly so on Elisha.  The choosing of where to go was not Jesus’ directive.  It was the autonomous authoritative decision of the Holy Spirit.  He was at work  in the earth preparing the way for the Messiah, guiding and shepherding Israel, speaking through her prophets, etc. throughout the Old Testament period and would be doing his thing once again after Jesus had finished his ministry.  I believe that Jesus was basically telling the people to “WATCH OUT”.  The Holy Spirit is extraordinarily jealous over the Son of God.  No village, person, country, etc. will fail to regret rejecting the Son of God when He visits them.  The Holy Spirit will make sure of that.  Be wary in how you honor the Son!

There may be myriad references to the often hidden “shadow ministry” of the Holy Spirit in the Bible.  It is the HOLY SPIRIT making the call.  When Christ says that we must put new wine into new wineskins, I believe He may be referring to the fresh winds, ways, and directions of God’s Spirit that we are so often blinded to by our traditions and doctrines and religious kingdoms and comfy places of knowing.  Let us start recognizing, honoring, and submitting to the Third Person of the Trinity in all the ways He moves…uniquely, autonomously, interdependently, and authoritatively.